Qatar's foreign minister: Iran has 'crucial role' in Syria

In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Qatari Foreign Minister Khalid bin Mohammad Al-Attiyah calls for a unified Syrian opposition and describes the plight of the Syrian people as "unprecedented."
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speaks with Qatar's Foreign Minister Khalid al-Attiyah (L) before the opening session of the Syrian Donors Conference at Bayan Palace in Kuwait City January 15, 2014. Kuwait's emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah promised $500 million on Wednesday for U.N. humanitarian efforts in Syria, devastated by almost three years of civil war. The emir made the pledge at an international donor conference intended to help the world body reach a $6.5 billion aid target for the crisis in
US Secretary of State John Kerry speaks with Qatar's Foreign Minister Khalid bin Mohammad Al-Attiyah before the opening session of the Syrian Donors Conference at Bayan Palace in Kuwait City, Jan. 15, 2014. - REUTERS/Pablo Martinez Monsivais
andrew parasiliti
Andrew Parasiliti
@ATParasiliti
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MONTREUX, Switzerland — Qatari Foreign Minister Khalid bin Mohammad Al-Attiyah said today that “Iran can play a vital role” in Syria.

"The only thing which made the organizer of this conference withdraw the Iranian invitation is because [the government of Iran] didn’t announce that they acknowledge Geneva I. But still, I think Iran has a crucial role in solving this issue," Attiyah said in an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor at the Jan. 22 opening session of the high-level segment of the United Nations peace conference on Syria.

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